This is a valid question. There are so many ranking factors nevertheless. As per the common belief, the SEO ranking factors of the year 2017 include a number of technical things and algorithms. A research has concluded that there are more than 200 such factors, which an expert should remember. However, the process is much concise in 2017 than it was some years ago. Confused? Read on the blog article to find out.
A research has concluded that there are more than 200 such factors, which an expert should remember. However, the process is much concise in 2017 than it was some years ago. Confused?
Are you ready to find it out? Let’s dig in.
The Google’s algorithm is dynamic in nature and it will be rather unwise to rely on the factors related to the yesteryears. From the perspective of the present day scenario, the most crucial ranking factors are:
• The Relevant Content
• Mobile-First User Experience
• The Backlinks
• All Other Technical Factors
Forget about everything else. In the year 2017, the most important SEO ranking factor is the content of the website. This is something agreed upon by the Search Quality Senior Strategist working with Google. This might not surprise a lot of you.
As Bill Gates had once said, “Content is King”, he said it in the year 1996. It was more of a spoiler than a prediction. Just like most of his forecasts related to the IT industry, Bill Gates was not wrong on this one as well.
There is a shift from the keyword-based content towards more relevant, non-plagiarized, and information piece of content. As per a research conducted by Search Metrics, only 53% of the top twenty queries on the engines have the keywords in the tag. The number is reducing with every year, which goes on to show that Google takes account of the relevance of the content and not the number of keywords stuffed in the given piece of information.
So what is exactly meant by relevant content? This is an interesting question with a number of answers. However, the aptest answer should be the content should be comprehensive in order to be relevant.
Let us take an example here. There is a general perception that the results from websites like Wikipedia will be very difficult to displace from the top position in the Google search results. Now, try to search a keyword: Labrador Retriever, you will most likely get the following results:
The article or write-up by Dog Time website is listed on the top of the list, even over the Wikipedia page. It includes a number of factors about the breed including the characteristics, history, personality, health, care, and even rescue groups. The webpage also includes infographics, pictures, and embedded videos.
A user will most likely receive more information than a general Wikipedia page on the Dog Time website. This is what the relevant content should be like.
As a matter of personal experience, it is recommended that a content auditing software is put to use for underlining the issues in the content and improving the authority in the niche.
Tip: Use Google’s semantic search to optimize keyword targeting in your articles.
Also Read: Tips to Create Your Website SEO Friendly
On November 4, 2016, Google announced mobile-first indexing. This means that a website’s compatibility with mobile now directly affects its search rankings.
Now, the Google’s indexing shifted from computers to mobile-first indexing, due to the obvious reason of an increase in the handheld devices during the period. Using Google Search Console for adding and verification of the mobile site is crucial in the optimization process. Apart from this, the following points should be considered:
• Implementation of Structured Data Testing Tool
• Ensuring that the website is accessible to Googlebot using txt testing tools
• Improving the loading speed of the page
• Meeting the Google’s criteria whilst preparing the mobile-friendly websites
• Never launching a broken or incomplete version of the mobile site.
Backlinks are an integral part of the SEO ranking factors in the present day scenario. Some of the most crucial areas by which backlinks can help the website include:
• Creating high-quality content: As illustrated in the first point itself, the starting point will always be to create relevant content.
• Promoting the content: Promotion of the content through social media is still one of the most crucial ways of getting the links and traffic. Facebook remains the most important resource of generating the clicks.
Tip: You Should Never Buy Cheap BackLinks.
Also Read: How SEO Helps in Business Development
Apart from the discussed points, there are a few other technical factors, which should be included in the list of best SEO ranking factors in 2017. They are as follows:
• Introducing Encryption: Yes! It is true. The secured websites make up more than 45% of the top search results. Google has already confirmed this in 2014.
• H1 and H2 Headings: The source code containing H1 and H2 headings are more likely to be among the top search results.
• Anchor Text: It is crucial to have exact-match anchor text. But there can be a chance of risking a Penguin Penalty as the links might appear to be unnatural. Consider the following graph:
SEO trends change with every year. It is an ever-evolving and dynamic industry. In the past one year, Google has emphasized the importance of having rich content and quality links. There is no doubt that the other traditional SEO ranking factors are crucial. However, if you consider the above four points whilst planning the SEO for your website, you get better results than your competitors do.
If you are too busy in business development and do not have the time for doing this all yourself, why don’t hire an expert like Process Venue to ensure that your website’s SEO management is always as per latest trends? Do let us know your views about the best SEO ranking factors in the comments below.
